COOPER Cronk has dropped a bombshell after steering the Kangaroos to another World Cup trophy, announcing his representative retirement.

Queensland and Australia will enter the great unknown in 2018 with the halves that have taken both sides to glory time and time again over the past decade walking away from the representative arena.

Cronk said he knew after Origin III that he had played his last game in maroon and told the media after the Kangaroos’ hard-fought win over England that he felt it was time to step aside so someone else could have the opportunity to forge a path in the iconic No. 7 jerseys.

“I never thought this would be possible in my wildest dreams, a kid growing up 20 minutes from here in the south side of Brisbane, I never knew that I thought or even hoped to play this amount of rep football,” Cronk said.

“And I’ve got a truckload of memories, good times and moments that I’ll cherish for a long time and I think it’s time for someone else to grab those memories and moments because I’ve had my fair share, I’ve had a great run, and I’ve been very fortunate and blessed for everything that’s come my way and, as I said, I think it’s time for someone else to put their fingerprints all over this footy team and grab some of their own memories, so that’s one reason.

“The other reason is a personal one because rep football takes a lot of your time and a lot of dedication, a lot of time away from home.

“I’ve made some big decisions in my personal and professional life over the last 12 months and I think this is a really good time to know that it’s an end point.”

Cronk’s decision comes as a surprise given the physical shape he is still in. Billy Slater admitted after the announcement that he had expected his good mate to continue on at all levels after deciding to extend his NRL career at the Roosters but the Tricolours will be the big winners, with the masterful No. 7 dedicating himself entirely to his new club.

It leaves Kevin Walters and Mal Meninga with some massive holes to fill, with Johnathan Thurston having already announced he would not be playing representative football in 2018, which will almost certainly be his last season of NRL.

Cooper Cronk of Australia kicks the ball.Source: AFP

Fittingly, Thurston was in Australia’s dressing room as Cronk gave his reasons for hanging up the boots to the press.

Had Cronk got his way the shoe would have been on the other foot — Thurston in the spotlight and Cronk slipping away into the shadows.

“I actually hoped that Thurston would have been here, obviously have a ticker-tape parade for him and I’d just slip in underneath but out of respect I told Mal early on in the week that I knew this was going to be my last time,” Cronk said.

“I rang Kevvie Walters Friday afternoon, before I told the group Friday night, and I asked them to keep it nice and quiet.

“Mal did something very special for me, he made my jersey a one off and something I’ll cherish for a long time with the insignia and the bronze representing 30-plus games and put that on my number on the back of the jersey as well, so it’s just a fitting end.”

Fitting also in the sense that Cronk goes out with a bulging trophy cabinet after adding a World Cup winners’ medal to a premiership trophy and a final Origin series win.

Cronk has been a huge part of what the Maroons have built since he debuted in a Queensland jersey in 2010 — winning seven of the eight series he played in.

But without he and Thurston, Walters’ side will have a sense of vulnerability about it next year and Cronk conceded it would be a fast learning curve for whoever replaces him.

“You could probably look at it that there’s a bit of slack in the rope,” Cronk said.

“But I guarantee you when you’ve got Kevvie Walters in charge, you’ve got Cameron Smith, Billy Slater, the guys who have been at the forefront of Queensland Rugby League for a long time, if there is any at all, it will be picked up quite easily.

“And the young guys that’ll come in will deserve their chance.

“They deserve the moments that I’ve had, they deserve the opportunity to build those memory banks and the bucketload of good times I’ve had in all the jerseys, it’s time for someone else to grab a couple of them.”